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That’s certainly true with pickup trucks, which have grown to almost goofy proportions over the last few generations.

While many people will still need or want a full-size truck, the mid-size market just got more competitive with the introduction of the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon.

The slightly smaller trucks that GM discontinued in 2012 bear the same names, but that’s all they have in common. These all-new trucks are based on a global platform and are built in Missouri.

So why downsize your ride? For one thing, you just step in, rather than crawling up into the truck and then sliding out — the main reason why I haven’t swapped my 17-year-old pickup for a new full-size one. Parking and manoeuvring through traffic is much easier, visibility is better, and I can actually reach the stuff I’ve tossed into the bed.

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Those who need to tow big things will still have to opt for the giants, but the V6-equipped Colorado/Canyon can tow a maximum of 7,000 lbs., which is 500 lbs. more than Nissan’s Frontier; 2,500 more than Honda’s Ridgeline; and twice as much as the Toyota Tacoma can pull.

Mechanically, the Chevy and GMC are twins, and come in Extended Cab with standard (6-foot-2) box, or Crew Cab with standard or short (5-foot-1) box, and in 4x2 or 4x4. Depending on the configuration, engine choices are a 2.5-L four-cylinder or 3.6-L V6. The four-cylinder can be ordered with a six-speed manual or optional six-speed automatic, while the V6 uses the automatic exclusively. Sometime in 2016, you’ll also be able to get a new 2.8-L Duramax diesel engine.

Chevy and GMC trucks used to be priced identically, but slight differences in trim now put Chevy as the base brand and GMC slightly more upscale. The Colorado starts at $19,900 and runs to $36,050, while the GMC begins at $20,600 and tops out at $39,200.

The company only brought along six-cylinders for the drive, and I have yet to pilot the four-banger. The V6 is a stout engine, producing 305 horsepower and 269 lbs.-ft. of torque (the four makes 200/191), and it’s a good fit to the smooth-shifting six-speed transmission. The truck drives well and I was impressed with how firmly it stuck to a washboard gravel road without skittering, and with a tight, solid feel.

The interior is a downsized version of the full-size Silverado and Sierra, with large, easy-to-use controls and handsome styling. It also follows the company’s policy of “no blanks” on the dash: in many vehicles, if you don’t order an option, its button is left as a blank plastic piece. Instead, GM changes the bezels to use only the buttons needed, so it doesn’t look like you went cheap on the option sheet.

While the company’s full-size Double Cab has four front-hinged doors, the Canyon/Colorado Extended Cab’s rear doors are hinged at the back. That’s common, but it’s also a little awkward, since you have to open the front doors before you can open the rear ones. Parked alongside another vehicle, those two doors form a triangle that makes it tough to transfer groceries from the cart into the rear of the cab. Like its bigger brother, though, the Crew Cab’s four doors open independently of each other.

Ford, Chrysler and Mazda left the compact/mid-size segment long ago, and competition consists of the Honda Ridgeline, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma. The Colorado and Canyon undercut all of them on base price. They’re also far more comfortable than the Tacoma which, for all that’s right with it, suffers from a combination of high floor and low seating position that forces the driver’s leg almost straight out, and I can’t pilot one for any length of time before my muscles cramp up. (Toyota will unveil an all-new Tacoma for 2016, and I’m hoping this has been changed.)

For all that I love any mid-size truck’s footprint, fuel efficiency seldom drops proportionately with size. Overall, the Canyon and Colorado models get slightly better mileage than their similarly-sized competition. However, when compared to their full-size Silverado/Sierra siblings, the 3.6-L V6 in 4x2 configuration rates a combined 11.2 L/100 km that isn’t too far off the 11.7 that the larger trucks’ 4.3-litre V6 gets. Be aware going in that while they do better than a full-size truck, don’t expect compact-car-style fuel figures.

While mid-size trucks were starting to look like an endangered species, the build-’em-bigger attitude of their full-size brethren works in their favour with many buyers. I’ve yet to see the upcoming new Toyota; the Frontier and Ridgeline have many good points; and who knows, Ford might up and give us a new Ranger after all. Even so, for comfort and performance, I rate GM’s twins at the top of the pack right now.

2015 Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon

Jil McIntosh is a regular contributor to Toronto Star Wheels. The vehicles tested were provided by the manufacturer. For more Toronto Star automotive coverage, go to thestar.com/autos . To reach Wheels Editor Norris McDonald: nmcdonald@thestar.ca .

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